I say, could you please repeat that again?

Friday

Jun 27, 2014 at 12:01 AM

Like so many other words, the adjective “redundant” can have several distinctly different meanings. Some of these meanings may signify a desirable feature or quality; other meanings, something undesirable.

By ERNIE MAZZATENTASpeaking of Words

Like so many other words, the adjective “redundant” can have several distinctly different meanings. Some of these meanings may signify a desirable feature or quality; other meanings, something undesirable.Redundant signifies safety when defined as “serving as a duplicate for preventing failure of an entire system (as in spacecraft) upon failure of a single component.” But it refers to something to be avoided when defined as “exceeding what is necessary or normal; a superfluous repetition.” (Both are Webster’s dictionary definitions.)Since this column concerns words rather than spacecraft, we will discuss redundant as needless repetition. An example of redundancy follows: “Is this evidence adequate enough to prove our case?”What does “adequate enough” tell you that “enough” doesn’t? The answer, of course, is nothing. This writer is using two similar words when one will do.In “Business Communication: Process and Product,” Mary Ellen Guffey elaborates on this theme: “Expressions that repeat meaning or include unnecessary words are redundant.” She offers this example: “Saying ‘unexpected surprise’ is like saying ‘surprise, surprise’ because ‘unexpected’ carries the same meaning as ‘surprise.’ ”In “Woe Is I,” an engaging guide to correct English, Patricia T. O’Conner warns that redundancies belabor the obvious. She says, “Some writers can’t make a point without poking you in the ribs with it.” For these writers, she notes, “A voice isn’t just pleasing, it’s pleasing to the ear.” She adds: “You don’t just give something away, you give it away for free.”How many times have you been accosted by the deplorable expression “free gifts” on radio and television, or in print advertising? (“Simply stop by — no purchase required — for your free gift today.”) Pray tell, what other kinds of gifts are there? Roy H. Copperud (“A Dictionary of Usage and Style”) tells us, “Gifts and passes are by definition free, even if the advertising gentry cannot be made to see it.”Henrietta Tichy (“Effective Writing for Engineers, Managers and Scientists”) notes that redundancies flow needlessly in the writing and speaking of people in many, if not all, fields. She cites a letter that legendary talk show host Jack Paar wrote to a network executive in which he said: “If I have acted hastily on an impulse ... .”Authors of English language textbooks often offer lengthy lists of redundancies. Here are some that you are likely to hear, read or perhaps even use: reply back; lose out; new innovation; present incumbent; advance reservations; and — maybe the most prevalent — exact same. (“Harry surprised me with the exact same necklace that I bought for myself last week.” Use one or the other, but not both.)Examine the following and see how many redundancies you can detect and delete (in the process, insert alternative phrasing): “I have attached together the information you requested and hope that it is adequate enough to meet your needs. Before in the past, you have told me that I often circle around the subject instead of addressing it directly. But today I think you will find that I have covered the basic essentials. After all, don’t you consider them the necessary requisites? However, if you find these details wanting, I will still continue writing until we are both satisfied with the end product.”

Share your rewritten paragraph with a local “language lover” — a knowledgeable friend, neighbor, co-worker or family member — and invite corrections. If you are in school, ask your English teacher for an assessment. Their responses may lead you to believe you are able to recognize and correct redundancies or that you need to work on this aspect of your writing and speaking.If you want to sharpen your ability to identify and deal effectively with redundancies, consider these suggestions:u Read more, read widely, and read analytically — to expand your vocabulary and thereby improve your ability to recognize words that have the same or similar meanings. That knowledge will help you to avoid unnecessary “doubling up” on such words in your own writing and speaking.u Enroll in an appropriate language course (credit or non-credit) to share your knowledge of redundancies and to add to it through discussion with your classmates and your instructor.u Always critique your business reports or personal letters, putting to work your expanded knowledge of redundancies. (Avoid: “I have come to the ultimate end of my investigation and will provide the true facts in this report.”)Please note: You’re more likely to discover unneeded repetition and related problems — such as fussy, “elegant” wording — when examining a second or third draft rather than a first draft. Researchers who study writing emphasize that this is when you are best prepared and more inclined to judge your work as an objective editor rather than as an involved writer.In summary, if you want to develop a more precise, grammatically correct and readable style of writing, then shunning or removing redundancies will help you to reach that goal.

Ernie Mazzatenta, a Hendersonville resident, teaches managerial communication and public speaking at Montreat College. He also serves as a community mediator at The Mediation Center in Hendersonville. Reach him at joern8@morrisbb.net.

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